ON THE PRAIRIE 121 



of the buffalo. The animal is so tough and 

 tenacious of life that it must be hit in the 

 right spot; and care must be used in ap- 

 proaching it, for its nose is very keen, and 

 though its sight is dull, yet, on the other 

 hand, the plains it frequents are singularly 

 bare of cover; while, finally, there is just a 

 faint spice of danger in the pursuit, for the 

 bison, though the least dangerous of all bo- 

 vine animals, will, on occasions, turn upon 

 the hunter, and though its attack is, as a 

 rule, easily avoided, yet in rare cases it man- 

 ages to charge home. A ranchman of my 

 acquaintance once, many years ago, went 

 out buffalo hunting on horseback, together 

 with a friend who was unused to the sport, 

 and who was mounted on a large, untrained, 

 nervous horse. While chasing a bull, the 

 friend's horse became unmanageable, and 

 when the bull turned, proved too clumsy to 

 get out of the way, and was caught on the 

 horns, one of which entered its flank, while 

 the other inflicted a huge, bruised gash 

 across the man's thigh, tearing the muscles 



